RDP / Sick On The Bus

July 25 1999

From the off, this one is about more than just the music. See, last time I saw a gig here, it was 3D House of Beef. That's what, nearly 3 years ago. There was the barman, Bekki and myself. That was it. It was cold damp and a bit miserable. Now, I won't pretend I've been a regular at The Old Angel over the years, because I haven't. But a few months ago I heard words and discover that there are plans to re-open upstairs for live gigs. And that has finally come to fruition with this one. And it has to be said, it looks and sounds fantastic. It's exactly what Nottingham needs. I mean, this is a good city, but it needs for you to be able to see a gig nearly every night of the week. At the moment, Rock City offers you a Saturday night, and if it's a big band, maybe one in the week. For a city like this, that's simply not enough. There's a burgeoning scene here, and it needs the outlet. The country needs venues like this to support the bands. Ask any unsigned band what one of the hardest things for them to do is, and they'll tell you it's to get a gig. I hope for Nottingham that this is the start. It now has a venue, run by people who actually appear to give a shit about the music. Now it needs people to support it. To check out bands almost irrespective of who it is, but because there's a band playing there. I spoke last year to a guy who runs Cheap Sweaty Fun promotions at TJs in Newport. They've been doing it for over 10 years. He said how they now get people travelling from Gloucester to see gigs there, not because they know who the band is, but because they know it's a CSF promotion, and they trust them. It's an element that is vital to the various music scenes in the UK. You need a combination of bands, venues and punters. This is a place that to me, could host yer Stampin Grounds and the like, and the unsigned bands on Yazcore would make a fitting showcase. Now there's a thought to plant in yer noggin. But it could also host yer American bands. Neurosis would destroy in this place, Unida and the like would be in stoner heaven and all the FatWreckChords style bands that you love and hate. Make it happen. And besides, how can you really fault a place that plays the Medulla Nocte album between bands. Makes a change from the bloody Deftones.

Anyway, to the music. 666 Dead were due to play as well, but due to splitting up earlier on this tour, they well didn't play.

So the honour of opening this thing up goes to Sick On The Bus. 4 blokes playing old style punk with a bit of the Lemmy on vocals, it's not actually to bad. The tunes come and go thick and fast and those it's not life changing for me, it's ok. Mind you, playing a flying V ain't very punk. That's a metal guitar there mate!

RDP are from Brasil, have guested on the last Sepultura album, and have a singer who though big, I'm still claiming ain't as big as Jammer from the Nocte. But they power through a crushing set. I don't know the songs, or what they're about as they're for the most part in Portugese. But it's a tight sweaty affair and is a fine way to set this place up and running. And besides, there can't be many better ways to finish a gig than with a song called Fuck Off And Die.

So there you go, not much about the music, but tonight was about more than that.